With the Prime Minister preparing to trigger Article 50 around 15 March, and so begin the process of Britain’s exit from the European Union, the Cabinet’s Brexit Committee has started to prepare a two-stage plan to deal with immigration. The plan will seek to deal with EU nationals already in the UK, and to set up a new visa regime for those who arrive in the UK in future. The Prime Minister intends that this will go hand in hand with the deal with EU member states to safeguard the rights of British citizens living in the EU, as well as those of EU citizens living in Britain. If such a deal can be reached, it is expected that all EU citizens residing in the UK as at the date Article 50 is triggered will be protected.
The focus of the proposal, which is thought to be outlined in a consultation document to be published this summer, is to take steps to enable the UK to access the skills of workers in key industries in the short term, and to ultimately seek to reduce migration. The proposal, which is subject to the consultation and is not expected to be introduced as a bill until early 2018, is expected to include:
- five-year working visas for new arrivals who are coming to the UK to take up jobs in key industries (including health and social care, and construction);
- creation of a “migration advisory committee” to advise on how many visas should be issued in each key industry; and
- plans to train British workers so that they can fill jobs in sectors which currently rely heavily on migrants, so that the number of visas issued can be reduced over time.
The bill would become law before March 2020. This will be of particular interest to employers who rely heavily on migrant workers.
The vote in the House of Lords last week also means that the government may need to amend the Brexit Bill to guarantee the rights of EU citizens already living in the UK. This will hopefully result in more clarity for the thousands of EU citizens working in the UK and the companies that employ them.
